According to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, just 4.4 percent of workers in the mining sector were unionized as of 2017. Fossil fuel companies have historically been hostile and, in some cases, violent toward unionization efforts, and coal companies throughout Appalachia and elsewhere have systematically busted unions in the sector via automation and hiring out-of-state workers.

A small group of neighbors who own some of the city's most valuable waterfront homes have put together a proposal for how to prevent flooding, ranging from mini sewage treatment plants to building an artificial island to clean pumped water.